Closure cap

ABSTRACT

The invention relates to a closure cap for arranging on a container neck ( 17 ) of a container ( 18 ), comprising at least a first cap part ( 23 ) and a second cap part ( 22 ), wherein an intermediate base ( 56 ) is formed between the first cap part ( 23 ) and the second cap part ( 22 ) and delimits a receiving space ( 21 ), which is formed in the closure cap, with respect to a container interior, and comprising an opening device for forming an opening in the intermediate base ( 56 ), wherein the first cap part ( 23 ) serves for connection to a container neck thread of the container neck ( 17 ), and the second cap part ( 22 ) can be rotated relative to the first cap part ( 23 ) in order to use the opening device, and to a container ( 18 ) having such a closure cap.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application represents the national stage entry of PCT International Application No. PCT/EP2017/079647 filed on Nov. 17, 2017 and claims priority to German Patent Application No. 10 2016 013 750.9 filed on Nov. 18, 2016. The contents of these applications are hereby incorporated by reference as if set forth in their entirety herein

The disclosure relates to a closure cap for arranging on a container neck of a container, comprising at least a first cap part and a second cap part, wherein an intermediate base is formed between the first cap part and the second cap part, which delimits a receiving space formed in the closure cap towards a container interior, and comprising an opening device for forming an opening in the intermediate base, wherein the first cap part serves for connection to a container neck thread of the container neck and the second cap part is rotatable relative to the first cap part in order to use the opening device.

Closure caps for arranging on a container neck of a container are known in the most widely varying embodiments. In particular, it is known from the field of food packaging to form the closure cap itself as a receiving space, in order to be able to delay the addition of e.g. food additives such as cereals to a food product such as yoghurt stored separately from the food additives in the interior of the container until directly prior to consumption. This serves in particular the purpose of not compromising the quality of the food additives by prematurely mixing them with the food product.

However, adding the food additives received in the closure cap requires that the closure cap is first removed from the container. This involves, of course, the risk that when manually handling the closure cap, its content is not fully added to the food product received in the container or that possibly an undesirable contamination of the food additives takes place prior to adding them to the food product.

In particular in the field of cosmetics or pharmaceutical packaging the latter represents a important point of view during handling of two-component products, i.e. products which do not attain their full effectiveness until after the addition of a second component to a first component. This applies for example to vitamin C supplements as the second component, which because of their volatile effectiveness cannot be added until immediately prior to the use of the two-component product of the first component.

The present disclosure is therefore based on the objective to propose a closure cap/a container with a closure cap such that a second component received in a receiving space of the closure cap separately from a first component received in the container can be added safely and in as easy a manner as possible to the first component received in the container interior.

To achieve this objective the disclosure comprises the features of claim 1 and claim 20, respectively.

The closure cap according to the disclosure for arranging on a container neck of a container comprises at least a first cap part and a second cap part, wherein an intermediate base is formed between the first cap part and the second cap part, which delimits a receiving space formed in the closure cap towards a container interior, and comprises an opening device for forming an opening in the intermediate base, wherein the first cap part serves for connection to a container neck thread of the container neck and the second cap part is rotatable relative to the first cap part in order to use the opening device.

With the closure cap according to the disclosure it is thus possible to form a feed-in opening in the intermediate base and to remove the closure cap from the container by means of a rotary movement.

If the second cap part is arranged coaxially to the first cap part and serves to use the opening device by rotating the second cap part about a container neck axis, this rotary movement can coincide with the rotary movement normally used for opening a container.

Preferably the opening device comprises an opening body and the intermediate base is configured to form a base opening as a base lost.

The intermediate base may, in particular, be configured such that it comprises a membrane or predetermined breaking device destroyable by the opening body.

Preferably the opening body is formed on the second cap part and the intermediate base delimits a receiving space formed in the first cap part.

With a preferred embodiment of the closure cap the second cap part is connected via a cap thread to the first cap part, wherein the cap thread runs in the opposite direction to the container neck thread, with which the first cap part is connected to the container, so that inadvertently opening the intermediate base during opening of the container is prevented.

Preferably the cap thread extends at least partially above a cap base of the first cap part, wherein the cap base serves to form the intermediate base.

It is especially preferred if the second cap part comprises a stop device, which in a closed position of the opening device, in which the opening device is arranged above the intermediate base, is arranged at a distance from a counter-stop device arranged on the first cap part, and which in an opened position, in which the opening device has penetrated the intermediate base, rests against the counter-stop device, in order to transfer, as rotation of the second cap part is continued, the rotation to the first cap part and remove the first cap part from the container neck.

Preferably a safety catch device is arranged between the first cap part and the second cap part such that after a relative position between the second cap part and the first cap part has been reached, in which the opening device has penetrated the intermediate base, a removal of the opening device from the intermediate base is prevented.

With a further preferred embodiment the opening body is formed on the first cap part and the intermediate base is formed on the second cap part.

It is especially preferred if the opening body is arranged below the intermediate base and the receiving space delimited by the intermediate base arranged above the opening body is formed on a cap base of the second cap part, so that the opening body may be arranged outside the receiving space.

Preferably the second cap part is rotatable relative to the first cap part until a carrier position provided with a rotary lock has been reached, such that on reaching the carrier position the opening body has penetrated the intermediate base, and as rotation continues beyond the carrier position, removal of the first cap part from the container neck takes place.

With a further preferred embodiment the opening body is configured as a third cap part independent of the first and second cap parts, which is connected via a coupling device to the second cap part such that a rotation of the second cap part for actuating the opening device causes an axial movement of the opening body on the container axis. As a result high axial feed-in forces can be realised on demand.

Preferably the axial movement of the opening body is overplayed by a rotation of the opening body.

Preferably the coupling device comprises a circumferential groove on the first cap part and an axial guiding groove on the second cap part, and the third cap part comprises an engaging device formed radially on the circumference such that when the second cap part is rotated about the container neck axis the engaging device is guided in both the circumferential groove and the axial guiding groove and performs, overlaid with a rotation about the container neck axis, an axial feed-in movement on the intermediate base.

Preferably the opening device comprises an annular body with at least two radially externally arranged engaging bodies for forming the engaging device and an opening spike arranged on a hub connected via spokes to the circular ring.

It is especially preferred if the second cap part comprises an inner sleeve for forming the axial guiding groove and an outer sleeve for forming a handling part such that the first cap part is received with a sleeve part for forming the circumferential groove in an annular gap formed between the inner sleeve and the outer sleeve of the second cap part.

Preferably the second cap part is designed as a multi-part cap part such that the inner sleeve and the outer sleeve are formed independently of one another and connected to each other in the region of the cap base of the second cap part.

Preferably the inner sleeve and the outer sleeve are connected to each other via a snap connection.

The container according to the disclosure comprises a closure cap according to the disclosure.

Preferred embodiments of the disclosure will now be explained in detail with reference to the drawing, in which

FIG. 1 shows an isometric view of a container provided with a closure cap according to a first embodiment;

FIG. 2 shows a sectional view of the container in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 shows the container depicted in FIG. 2 in an opened position for connecting a receiving space formed in the closure cap to the container interior of the container;

FIG. 4 shows a sectional view of the closure cap according to line IV-IV in FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 shows an isometric view of a container provided with a closure cap in a second embodiment;

FIG. 6 shows the container in FIG. 5 in a partially sectional view;

FIG. 7 shows the container in FIG. 5 in a further partially sectional view;

FIG. 8 shows a top view of the container in FIG. 5;

FIG. 9 shows the underside of the closure cap of the container shown in FIG. 5;

FIG. 10 shows the closure cap of the container in a sectional view as per section line X-X in FIG. 6;

FIG. 11 shows the closure cap in a sectional view as per section line XI-XI in FIG. 6;

FIG. 12 shows an isometric view of a container with a closure cap in a further embodiment;

FIG. 13 shows the container in FIG. 12 in a sectional view;

FIG. 14 shows an enlarged view of the closure cap of the container shown in FIG. 13;

FIG. 15 shows a first cap part of the closure cap shown in FIG. 14;

FIG. 16 shows the closure cap depicted in FIG. 14 after opening an intermediate base formed in the first cap part;

FIG. 17 shows an exploded view of the closure cap.

In FIGS. 1 to 4 a first embodiment of the closure cap 111 is shown, wherein in the present exemplary embodiment above a first cap part 14 connected via a container neck thread to a container neck 17, an upper second cap part 10 serves to form an opening device. The cap part 10 comprises a cap base 11, which comprises an opening body 12, which is provided with a cutting edge 57 preferably configured as a circular segment provided with a pitch.

A beaker-shaped receiving space 15 formed on the first cap part 14 serving to receive a second component is delimited by an intermediate base 13, which at the same time forms a cap base of the first cap part 22. The intermediate base 13 formed on the first cap part 14 comprises a sealing foil 16 in the case of the depicted exemplary embodiment.

The upper cap part 10 is connected to the lower cap part 14 via a cap thread 58 which runs in the opposite direction to a container neck thread 59, with which the lower cap part 14 is arranged on the container neck 17 of the container 18. Preferably the upper second cap part 10 is connected to the lower first cap part 14 by a left-hand thread and the first cap part 14 is screwed to the container neck 17 via the container neck thread 59 configured as a right-hand thread, i.e. running contrary to the cap thread 58.

To actuate the opening device the upper second cap part 10 in the preferred embodiment is rotated anti-clockwise corresponding to the normal direction of rotation for unscrewing a closure cap from a container neck, so that the upper cap part 10 pierces the sealing foil 16 with the cutting edge 57 formed on the opening body 12, thereby forming a connecting opening in the intermediate base 13 of the lower cap part 14. The second component can thus get from the receiving space 15 of the closure cap 111 to the first component in the container 18, in order to allow the two components to be mixed.

As a comparison between FIGS. 2 and 3 shows, provided rotation of the upper second cap part 10 is continued, the cap part 10 abuts with a stop device formed by the bottom edge 53 of the cap part 10 against a counter-stop device as rotation continues, the first cap part 14 can be removed together with the second cap part 10 from the container neck 17.

As shown in particular in FIG. 4, a carrier 19 is formed between the upper second cap part 10 and the lower first cap part 14, which in the present case is provided in the region of the cap thread 52 radially delimiting the receiving space 15 and which engages in a wall recess 20 of the cap wall 54 of the upper second cap part 10, in order to ensure that after reaching a relative position between the upper second cap part 10 and the lower first cap part 14, in which the cutting edge of the opening body 12 has already destroyed the sealing foil 16, a reverse rotation of the upper second cap part 10 is no longer possible.

In FIGS. 5 to 11 a closure cap 222 is shown in a second embodiment, in which a receiving space 21 for receiving the second component is formed in a radially outer second cap part 22 and an opening device is formed by a radially inner first cap part 23.

To form the receiving space 21 a beaker-shaped extension 25 is formed on a cap base 24 of the cap part 22, which in order to form an intermediate base 56 at its lower end is provided with a sealing foil 26 arranged in an oblique plane. To form the opening device the inner first cap part 23 comprises a sleeve-like extension 28 on its cap base 27, which receives the beaker-shaped extension 25 and which, at its lower end, is provided with an opening body 29 cutting edge aligned with the sealing foil 26.

The radially inner first cap part 23 is connected to the container 18 via a container neck thread formed on the container neck 17. The radially outer second cap part 27 is rotatable about the container neck axis across a defined range, about 270° in the present case, relative to the inner cap part 23, wherein a stop device determining this range of rotation is formed between a cap base 24 of the outer second cap part 22 and a cap base 32 of the inner first cap part 23. To form the stop device two stops 32 defining the 270° range of rotation are formed on a ring-shaped stop web 34 on the cap base 32. FIG. 6 shows a stop 33, against which a carrier 35 arranged on the cap base 24 at the foot of the beaker-shaped extension 25 rests in an end position.

From the starting position depicted in FIG. 6, which is secured, as shown in FIG. 10, by a snap-in projection 49 on the inside of a cap wall 30 engaging in a snap-in indentation 50 formed on stop web 34, the outer second cap part 22 can initially be rotated anti-clockwise about 270°, wherein the cutting edge of the opening body 29 opens the sealing foil 26 and the second component can get from the receiving space 21 into the container 18. At the end of the relative rotation of 270° the carrier 35 abuts against the second stop 33 so that as rotation of the outer second cap part 22 continues, the first cap part 23 is carried along, and complete opening of the container 18 can take place by unscrewing the entire closure cap 222 from the container neck 17.

In FIGS. 12 to 17 a further embodiment of a closure cap 333 arranged on a container neck 60 of a receiving container 61 is depicted, which comprises a first cap part 64 connected via a container neck thread 63 to the container neck 60, which comprises, as revealed in particular in FIGS. 14 to 16, a beaker-shaped receiving space 66 above an intermediate base 65 formed in the cap part 64. The closure cap 333 is formed by the first cap part 64 being combined with a second cap part 67, which in the present case is composed of an inner sleeve 68 and an outer sleeve 69. The inner sleeve 68 and the outer sleeve 69 are non-rotatably connected to each other via an engaging connection 71 formed on a cap base 70, wherein the inner sleeve 68 and the outer sleeve 69 are spaced apart from each other by an annular gap 72, in which the first cap part 64 engages with a sleeve part 73 radially delimiting the receiving space 66.

The second cap part 67 is connected to the first cap part 64 by providing a further engaging device 74, which in the present case allows the second cap part 67 to interlock with the first cap part 64 in that a snap-in ring 75 formed radially outside on the inner sleeve 68 snaps into a ring-shaped snap-in recess 76 formed radially inside on the inner sleeve 68, such that the cap part 67 is axially fixed on the cap part 64 and rotation of the second cap part 67 is possible relative to the first cap part 64 about a container neck axis 77.

As revealed, in particular, in FIG. 14, an opening body 78 is arranged within the receiving space 66 of the first cap part 64, which cooperates via a coupling device 79 with the second cap part 67, such that a rotation of the second cap part 57 leads to an axial movement of the opening body 78 along the container neck axis 77, wherein due to an axial opening movement of the opening body 78, as shown when comparing FIG. 16 to FIG. 14, a destruction of the intermediate base 65 takes place in that an opening spike of the opening body 78 pierces the intermediate base 65 so that a second component received in the receiving space 66 can get into the container 61 and mix with the first component held in the container 61.

The opening body 78 forms a third cap part independent of the second cap part 67, which is connected with the second cap part 67 in such a way that a rotation of the second cap part 67 device causes an axial movement of the opening body on the container vertical axis 77 for actuating the opening.

The coupling device 79 comprises, as revealed in particular in FIG. 15, a circumferential groove 81 formed radially inside on the sleeve part 73 of the first cap part 64 with two groove segments 82, 83 arranged horizontally opposite to each other and running contrary to each other in circumferential direction, the groove segments having a pitch such that starting, respectively, from a groove beginning 84, which with both groove segments 82, 83 are arranged in a common horizontal plane, for a rotation to the right of the second cap part 67 relative to the first cap part 64, radially formed and diametrically arranged guiding pins 85 on the opening body 78 move in the groove segments 82, 83 in direction of a groove end 97 situated, respectively, below the groove beginning 84, wherein the guiding pins remain arranged in a common horizontal movement plane E.

The inner sleeve 68 of the second cap part 67 is provided with diametrically opposite and axially extending guiding grooves 86, which are pierced by the guiding pins 85 guided with their ends in the groove segments 82, 83, so that for a rotary movement of the second cap part 67 relative to the first cap part 64 the rotary movement is transferred from the second cap part 67 to the opening body 78, while the opening body 78 is not only guided radially on the circumference of the first cap part 64 with its guiding pins 85 in the groove segments 82, 83 but also guided axially in the guiding grooves 86 of the second cap part 67, so that an axial feed-in movement in direction of the intermediate base 65 results for the opening body 78, which is overlaid by a rotation about the container neck axis 77.

With a rotation of the second cap part 67 in the opposite direction the guiding pins 85 of the opening body 78 knock against the respective groove beginning 84 of the groove segments 82, 83, so that as rotation of the second cap part 67 continues, the first cap part 64 is carried along in the same direction and the closure cap 333 can be removed from the container neck 60.

In order to facilitate, as far as possible, an unobstructed transfer of a component by the opening body 78 from the receiving space 66 into the container 61 after the intermediate base 65 has been opened, the opening body 78 comprises a ring corpus 87, wherein the opening spike 80 is arranged on a hub 89 connected to the ring corpus 87 via spokes 88.

As revealed in particular when comparing FIGS. 16 and 17, in order to form the engaging connection 71 provided on the cap base 7, an external toothing 91 is formed between the inner sleeve 68 and the outer sleeve 69 on an upper circumferential edge 90 of the inner sleeve 68, which forms an engagement point with an internal toothing 92 formed on the cap base 70 of the outer sleeve 69, when the circumferential edge 90 of the inner sleeve 68 engages in an annular gap 93 formed on the cap base 70, wherein a snap-in connection 94 is formed between an annular web 95 representing the radially inner limit of the annular gap 93 and the circumferential edge 90 of the inner sleeve 68, said snap-in connection 94 being formed in the present case analogously to the engaging device 74 and comprising a snap-in ring 96 formed radially outside on the annular web 95, wherein the annular ring 96 engages in a ring-shaped snap-in recess 98 formed radially outside on the circumferential edge 90 of the inner sleeve 68. 

1. A closure cap for arranging on a container neck of a container with at least a first and a second cap part, wherein an intermediate base is formed between the first cap part and the second cap part, which delimits a receiving space formed in the closure cap towards a container interior, and comprising an opening device for forming an opening in the intermediate base, wherein the first cap part serves for connection to a container neck thread of the container neck and the second cap part is rotatable relative to the first cap part in order to use the opening device.
 2. The closure cap according to claim 1, wherein the second cap part is arranged coaxially to the first cap part and serves to use the opening device, by rotating the second cap part about a container neck axis.
 3. The closure cap according to claim 1, wherein the opening device comprises an opening body and the intermediate base is configured for forming a base opening as a base lost.
 4. The closure cap according to claim 3, wherein the intermediate base comprises a membrane or predetermined breaking device destroyable by the opening body.
 5. The closure cap according to claim 3, wherein the opening body is formed on the second cap part and the intermediate base delimits a receiving space formed in the first cap part.
 6. The closure cap according to claim 5, wherein the second cap part is connected via a cap thread to the first cap part, wherein the cap thread runs contrary to the container neck thread, with which the first cap part is connected to the container.
 7. The closure cap according to claim 6, wherein the cap thread extends at least partially above a cap base of the first cap part, wherein the cap base serves to form the intermediate base.
 8. The closure cap according to claim 6, wherein the second cap part comprises a stop device, which in a closed position of the opening device, in which the opening device is arranged above the intermediate base, is arranged at a distance from a counter-stop device arranged on the first cap part, in which in an opened position, in which the opened device has penetrated the intermediate base, rests against the counter-stop device, in order to, as rotation of the second cap part is continued, transfer the rotation to the first cap part and remove the first cap part from the container neck.
 9. The closure cap according to claim 8, wherein a safety catch device is arranged between the first cap part and the second cap part, such that after a relative position between the second cap part and the first cap part, in which the opening device has penetrated the intermediate base, has been reached, removal of the opening device from the intermediate base is prevented.
 10. The closure cap according to claim 1, wherein the opening body is formed on the first cap part and the intermediate base is formed on the second cap part.
 11. The closure cap according to claim 10, wherein the opening body is arranged below the intermediate base and the receiving space delimited by the intermediate base arranged above the opening body is formed on a cap base of the second cap part.
 12. The closure cap according to claim 11, wherein the second cap part relative to the first cap part is rotatable until a carrier position provided with a rotary lock is reached, such that when the carrier position is reached, the opening body has penetrated the intermediate base and, as rotation beyond the carrier position is continued, removal of the first cap part from the container neck takes place.
 13. The closure cap according to claim 1, wherein the opening body is configured as a third cap part independent of the first and the second cap parts, which is connected via a coupling device to the second cap part such that a rotation of the second cap part causes an axial movement of the opening body on the container axis in order to actuate the opening device.
 14. The closure cap according to claim 13, wherein the axial movement of the opening body is overlaid by a rotation of the opening body.
 15. The closure cap according to claim 14, wherein the coupling device comprises a circumferential groove formed on the first cap part and an axial guiding groove formed on the second cap part, and in that the third cap part comprises an engaging device formed radially on the circumference, such that for a rotation of the second cap part about the container neck axis the engaging device is guided both in the circumferential groove and in the axial guiding groove, and performs, overlaid by a rotation about the container neck axis, an axial feed-in movement on the intermediate base.
 16. The closure cap according to claim 15, wherein the opening body comprises an annular body with at least two radially externally arranged engaging bodies for forming an engaging device and an opening spike arranged on a hub connected via spokes to the circular ring.
 17. The closure cap according to claim 15, wherein the second cap part comprises an inner sleeve for forming the axial guiding groove and an outer sleeve for forming a handling part, such that the first cap part is received with a sleeve part for forming the circumferential groove in an annular gap formed between the inner sleeve and the outer sleeve of the second cap part.
 18. The closure cap according to claim 17, wherein the inner sleeve is designed as a multi-part cap part, such that the inner sleeve and the outer sleeve are formed independently of one another and are connected to each other in the region of the cap base of the second cap part.
 19. The closure cap according to claim 12, wherein the inner sleeve and the outer sleeve are connected to each other via a snap connection.
 20. A container comprising a closure cap according to claim
 1. 